Detroit Pistons: Greg Monroe begins preseason as reserve

Stan Van Gundy has a lot of work to do with the Detroit Pistons, and one of the things he needs to figure out is what the heck he is going to do with that front court.

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With Andre Drummond, Greg Monroe and Josh Smith, the Pistons have three big men who play near the basket. That eats up paint and prevents effective spacing. The three simply couldn’t play together last season without the Pistons resembling a youth soccer game with a bunch of six-year olds fighting over the ball.

Van Gundy will do some experimenting during the preseason, and in the team’s exhibition opener he went with a starting unit of Smith, Drummond, Jodie Meeks, Caron Butler and Brandon Jennings with Monroe coming off the bench.

Monroe thrived in the role, eating up the opposing second unit and scoring 22 points. He told Vincent Goodwill Jr. of The Detroit News that he isn’t concerned with whether or not he is a starter.

"“I don’t have to handle it. I have to play,” Monroe said after the game. “That’s not gonna change, whether I start or come off the bench, how I play. He (Van Gundy) makes the decision. I’m gonna play.”"

Monroe is saying the right things, especially considering that one of these three guys has to sit to start games for the Pistons. If Monroe wants to stay in Detroit, it helps not to clash with Van Gundy early over these things. Considering that Drummond figures to be the focal point of the team moving forward, coming off the bench also gives Monroe more opportunities to score.

We’ll see more lineup changes from the Pistons this preseason. It’ll be interesting to see which one works the best.

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